Life with Peanut

Oh Bailey

2011-05-17T23:04:00.000-04:00

It is with sadness that I tell you all that Bailey the Betta Fish passed away this evening. He died peacefully in his bowl surrounded by family. He had just spent the afternoon playing with Allen and a Batman action figure, and then (likely after some trauma) relaxing while watching some television with Allen.

Allen is taking it well. Maybe a little too well. As we timidly explained to him that Bailey was no longer, he looked at the dead fish in Daddy's hand, picked it up, put it back, and said, "We'll have to go to PetSmart and get another one that looks like him." Then, as we went to say our goodbyes before the porcelain grave, he took Bailey out of Daddy's hand, threw him in the toilet, and flushed it. So much for that.

He did, however, sing a song to Bailey while playing in the bathtub tonight ...

xoxo,
AHC

My new obsession ...

2011-05-09T22:51:00.000-04:00

I recently purchased this. I purchased it because I love letterpress, but I've ended up using the die-cutting feature more. Letterpress takes a lot of patience and precision, so it's been a bit slower. Anyway, this purchase has led me to a fabulous relationship with my girls at Carolina Stamper. It's also cost me a lot of money.

But, it's also enabled me to make some handmade gifts. For instance, for Teacher Appreciation Week, I made books of Allen's "Favorite Things" about his teachers. Ms. Avril (hers is the one in yellow tones) left us a message in tears. She loved it! I've also started making some cards that I'm going to sell in the shop if they're good enough. Wanna see what I've been up to?

I'll post more soon about Allen's antics.

xoxo,
AHC

Please don't hate me ...

2011-05-09T22:31:00.000-04:00

for being so remiss with my posting. I'm sorry! It's been a busy couple of months, especially last month. Brian and I auxiliary pioneered and I'm happy to say that we made our time!

Onto some pictures ... last month D&H came to visit, and we went to Charleston for the day. Allen came home with this crazy getup ...

You know I had to try it on, too! More to come ...

International Noturno Aventura

2011-03-06T22:16:00.000-05:00

This past Thursday night was International Night at Allen's school. We were away last year, so we had no idea what to expect, but we were very excited. Allen's been talking about Brazil for the last few weeks. Plus we were making Brazilian food!

Here's what we made:

Little Coconut Kisses

Creamy Corn Cake (which we made as muffins, obviously)

Interestingly enough, both items were Gluten free (an experiment Brian and I are trying).

We arrived at the school, and Allen got a passport, which he was to get stamped in each country. The countries were: Brazil, Antarctica, Thailand, Ireland, Chile, Aruba, and India. Here are some photo highlights ...

Annie the Anaconda. She's a life-size model -- 22 feet long! The kids stuffed her with recycled paper, and painted her. She was gorgeous!

The Amazon Rainforest

The children cut out different insects and animals from the Amazon and colored them. Then Ms. Avril and Ms. Jennifer stuck them onto the trees. You can also see part of Annie the Anaconda here.

Chilling out with a snow cone in Antarctica (get it?)

Ireland!

The elementary students made a topographical map of India

Allen's future bride, Amelia (according to Allen) showing off her henna.

Ms. Amy decorating Allen's hand with Henna.

Allen's passport. Which was stamped in every country!

You can see more pictures here, but these are the highlights. Allen's classroom was by far the best. Brazil had the most food, and the most creative decor. Overall we had a fantastic time!

Chefs' Feast

2011-02-28T21:12:00.001-05:00

Update: For more information about the event, check out this article I wrote.

This should really be a better post than what I am writing. But I'm tired. For those of you who don't know what Chefs' Feast is, it's a huge fundraiser that the Lowcountry Food Bank does every year to benefit their childhood programs. I'll try to post more detail when I'm not so tired. But in the meantime, tickets are $175 each, and we were given (yes, given) four tickets to the event because of the work we did with the Lowcountry Food Bank for the Farmers' Table.

It was an unbelievable event. Between 900 and 1,000 people were there. Twenty-nine chefs from throughout the Lowcountry were represented. It was amazing. When I'm not so tired, I'll share more statistics with you. But for the meantime, here is a picture of me and Brian. I hate this picture, but I've talked for so long about my five-inch heels and awesome dress that I have to post.

xoxo,
AHC

Making Beds and Cupcakes

2011-02-21T21:44:00.000-05:00

It's President's Day, so Allen didn't have school (he's been home so many days this month, I'm beginning to wonder why we paid tuition). After a late start this morning (Mommy needed to sleep in after barely sleeping the two nights before), we got up and started our day.

Allen and I have made his bed together before, but today I asked him to do it himself. He was so proud! And I was extremely proud of myself for not "fixing" it. What do you think?

We went grocery shopping this afternoon. I was smart enough to avoid Wal-Mart, but even at Bi-Lo, there were toys at every turn. I'm proud to say that I was able to deflect most of Allen's toy requests. He did land a toy shovel, but at $2.99, I thought it was worth teaching him to help Daddy in the yard.

This evening, we made cupcakes. Allen helped mix the batter, and then helped decorate them. They were yummy!

How was your day? Were you off today, or did you work?

xoxo,
AHC

Brazil

2011-02-17T23:13:00.000-05:00

International Montessori Week is coming up, and Allen's class is studying Brazil (remember, last year was Italy).

This evening, as we were waiting for our pizza, Allen kept repeating some word. And then he announces, "That's Porgucheese."

You mean, Portuguese, buddy?

xoxo,
AHC

PS Of course, once we laughed and corrected him, he kept saying, "Porgucheese Porgucheese."

Pneumonia

2011-02-08T18:34:00.000-05:00

That's right. My sweet boy has Pneumonia! I don't know how he got it, and fortunately we got it early, but still ... When he woke up this morning, his fever was 104 degrees! That's the highest his temperature has ever been!

The nurse assured me that a temperature that high is OK. It means his body is doing what it should. It will not cause brain damage, but it could cause a Febrile Seizure. Apparently they are scary as all get-out to see, but don't do any damage. Grrreaaat ...

The doctor thought he might have the Flu as well -- even though he got the vaccine -- but fortunately, he doesn't. For about 10 minutes though, I was terrified, because he's been in close contact with both his great-grandmothers and a little baby in the past 48 hours. (A warning: about 5 cases out of 100 that Allen's practice has seen have been cases where the patients received the Flu vaccine. So there are strains out there that laugh at the vaccine).

Needless to say, we spent the rest of the day at home, with Allen almost constantly touching me. We gave him some cough medicine that causes drowsiness at about 1:00 this afternoon. He fought sleep until about an hour before his next dose. Such will power he has!

Fever is still running pretty high, but we're armed with Tylenol, Amoxicillan, and Dimetapp. Mom and Allen will be home-bound for the next few days, so feel free to call us or email us or Facebook us or whatever. Mama's really bored!

xoxo,
AHC

New System

2011-02-07T20:58:00.000-05:00

I almost forgot ... on the way home from Nana's tonight (and after a number of arguments with Gigi over whether or not Allen's lack of sock-wearing would cause illness), Allen told his Daddy, that ...
"In the new system, I won't be sick anymore. We need to tell Gigi that!"

How heartwarming! Maybe my little boy will give a witness to Gigi that will reach her heart.

xoxo,
AHC

Viking, David & Goliath

2011-02-07T20:47:00.000-05:00

The other day Allen and I were at the big box store near our house. I was wandering around looking for something when I came across ... a How to Train Your Dragon Viking costume! I think I've mentioned that this is Allen's new favorite movie. Well, this costume was on clearance, so Mommy could not resist.

Allen was thrilled with it. He's been wearing it everywhere. We even convince Ms. A, his teacher, that he could bring it to school one day.

Here he is lounging at home ...

In the meantime, we have been listening to the Bible Stories on the iPod while in the car. Allen loves it. We have listened to the book probably five times through. Which means that Allen is very familiar with the stories.

We asked him what he wanted to do for Family Worship this week, and he said, "Talk about David and watch the David video." So we did. After the video we decided to re-enact the story of David and Goliath. With only minor prompting from Mom and Dad, this is how Allen performed (with Dad as Goliath) ...

This isn't the only story he knows. As he looks through the Bible Story book at meetings, he remembers most of the titles. Thursday afternoon, as we were listening to the Bible Stories on the way home from school, Allen heard the Introduction to one of the sections with Joseph, and he said, "That bad Joseph tried to force me to lay down with him!" That was a little strange ...

And today as Allen was watching television in my bed and I started the shower in my bathroom, he said, "Mommy, can you shut the door tight, like Jehovah shut the door of the ark?"

Allen and I are sick again. I gave him my cold, which has evolved in both of us into something different. I have a sinus infection. We'll find out tomorrow what Allen has. His fever got all the way up to 103.6 today, which was very scary for me.

After Gigi's and my doctor's appointments today, we all went to lunch at Chick-Fil-A. After Allen prayed, he noticed that Gigi was starting to eat without praying. He told her to say a prayer.

Then tonight, as Gigi was telling Allen (for the millionth time) to put on his socks so he wouldn't get sick, Allen explained that Mommy had given him this sickness.

"She did? I'll beat her up!" Gigi declared.

"DON'T YOU DARE!!" Allen replied.

Such a sweet boy. Now the three of us are in bed, with Allen determined to stay awake as long as he can.

So I'd better go. Maybe he'll go to sleep if I snuggle with him instead of feeding my online addictions ...

xoxo,

AHC

2011-01-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned the other day, we had a situation with reference to Allen's school. Last Thursday night, I was unwinding after meeting by checking Facebook. In my news feed was a link to this article. Talk about upsetting! Not only were the allegations disturbing, but the fact that the school had not informed the parents of the incident was alarming. I immediately email the school's director.

The next morning, a rather generic email was sent to all parents by the school's board. It basically said that the situation had been "appropriately addressed" with no further explanation. So I sent another email to the Director and President of the Board expressing my grave concerns about both the safety of Allen and the other students as well as concern for the boys involved. I was invited to a meeting with the Director.

She immediately assured me that Allen has no contact with these children. Since the incident, they have adjusted the playground schedules so that only one class is on the playground at a time; thus providing more supervision. They have fenced off the tree, as it was a blind spot (obviously) on the playground. And the teachers have spent their last two In Service days reviewing protocol and procedures for incidents like these. But most importantly, the Director immediately notified three different divisions of DSS (Department of Social Services). Child Protective Services made a notation of it, and OHAN (Out-of-Home Abuse and Neglect) is investigating it.

I feel very reassured after speaking with the Director, though I wish that they had just share the above information in the first place. Preferably before we'd read about it in the newspaper (they had no idea the article was going to be published).

Have any of you moms out there ever had to deal with a situation like this? What did you do? What did the school do? Sadly, while I never want to have to face this again, I have a bad feeling this is not the last incident like this that Allen will be exposed to during his school career ....

xoxo,
AHC

It's been awhile

2011-01-23T21:27:00.000-05:00

The above picture has nothing to do with anything ... I just feel bad posting without a picture of the boy (but in case you're curious, he was showing me his Orange TicTacs).

We have been busy. I'm finally healthy again. Mom and I went to Atlanta to Market last week. It was the quickest we've ever done it. We were only gone two nights. But we got some cool stuff.

Allen totally rocks. He's taken to calling his great grandmothers the "old girls." They love it. They came for dinner tonight (along with Nana and Papa), and Allen was in heaven. He loves his Gramma and Gigi.

Allen's been listening to the Bible Stories in the car lately. I think he's really benefiting. He's calling them to mind very easily, and bringing them up in conversation. We're very proud. Now if only he would put into practice what he's learning (we're still having a hard time obeying Mom & Dad).

Mom and Dad (me and Brian) are a little stressed out lately. A situation at Allen's school has come to our attention, and we're not happy with the way it's been handled. I'm meeting with the Director of the school tomorrow. I'm nervous ... I hope I can firmly express our stand.

I guess that's all for now. I'll let you know how things go tomorrow. And I'll try to get some more pics and stories together this week.

xoxo,
AHC

At least my hair looked good

2011-01-12T17:18:00.000-05:00

For those of you who don't know, I've had a heck of a time the past couple months, health-wise. I caught Allen's sinus infection. Went on an antibiotic. Didn't get rid of the sinus infection and added a cough. Went on more antibiotics, Prednisone, and cough medicine. Caught Allen's stomach bug (wanted to die ... 11 hours straight of vomiting).

Then I started to feel better. We went to Chicago, and I started to feel run down again. I also became increasingly disillusioned with my hair, and decided to try a whole new salon. Went a bit blonder, got my hair shaped a little better. Wanna see?

Oh wait ... that's not me! C'mon, I can't put pictures of me without the gorgeous boy, can I?

Then I promptly got sick again. The sinus infection returned AGAIN, plus I was also privileged enough to get Strep Throat! More antibiotics and more Prednisone. But, at least my hair was cute ...

I'm happy to say that I'm finally on the mend, and am armed with all kinds of immune-boosting supplements so that, hopefully, I will be healthy for at least a little while.

xoxo,
AHC

Splashes of Color

2011-01-12T17:05:00.000-05:00

So, I've been bored with my house lately. Especially after visiting Kristen and Josh and watching her and Mom reorganize/restyle her house. It seems to me that I don't have enough color downstairs (remember what color my office is?). I want to repaint downstairs, but I thought that -- at least to get started -- I could pick out a tablecloth for my dining room table, and some new pillows ... What do you think?

This picture has nothing to do with our decor ... but shows what our house looks like when Allen's on Winter Break ... all his toys migrate from his room downstairs to the living room. Here we are with everything ready to go back upstairs ...

Chicago in December

2011-01-12T16:50:00.000-05:00

Is beautiful, but FREEZING! Not sure whose brilliant idea it was for us to visit this time of year, but we did it. And we had a great time. Sadly, I don't have too many pictures, but I did take a few on our outing to two museums ...

Notice what we call the "Craig Tongue of Concentration" in the above pics. Daddy still does that sometimes ...

Gigi bought him a video camera, and he brought it with him to the Shedd Aquarium. Here he was filming the sharks ... I should really upload the video, huh?

Here he is zooming around the "grocery store" at the Kohl Children's Musuem ...

Watching something cool with Dad in the Water area ...

And examining a nice fake potato.

Back at the Aquarium, he got to hang out with the Sea Lion for a few minutes ... and gave him a name ...

All in all, we had a great time visiting Kristen and Josh (and the rest of the Saxes). But I think next time we should visit in the Spring ...

xoxo,
AHC

PS. Kristen's got some shots of the adults enjoying themselves over on her blog.

We need a bigger house

2010-12-22T17:49:00.000-05:00

Allen came to work with me today. And he wasn't really feeling it. By 10:30 he wanted pizza from across the street. And was really annoyed that I couldn't make them be open and get him pizza then. By 1:00 he was over his toys. Apparently his dragons, Leapster, and cars don't have the same appeal at the shop. He wanted to play on the computer. So we did some stuff ... then we looked at an email from Aunt Kristen.

You see, when we go to Chicago (on the 25th), we'll be going to Shedd Aquarium. It will be great fun. But, the show is holiday themed, so Kristen wanted to let us know that. She thought that if we really didn't want to go, we could check this out. Well, once we visited the website of this awesome children's museum, it was all over. We had to go. But Allen also wants to go to the aquarium ...

Fast forward to bedtime. As usual, I laid down with Allen until he fell asleep. He was feeling particularly talkative. So we talked about the aquarium. He decided that he was going to get a pet whale, sea anemone, coral, and fish. Mommy would get a pet shark. And Daddy would get a pet octopus. And they (along with Bailey, our Beta fish) would live in a giant fish tank in his room.

I finally got him to settle down to go to sleep. Then he whispered,
"In the paradise, lions are going to be nice right?"
"Yup," I replied.
"I learned that from you I mean the Bible book I mean the Bible."
I asked him, "And, what do we have to do to get to the paradise?"
"Drive?" he asked?
I laughed, "No."
"Walk?"
(laughing) "No. We have to obey Jehovah. Now go to sleep."
"OK." (silence, then whispering), "I'm playing with your hair so you can feel better."

Five minutes later, he was asleep ...

xoxo,
AHC

PS Allen says, "a long long days ago" when referring to something that happened in the past. I love it.

Dragons and Snowflakes

2010-12-20T22:03:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure why, but Allen has started waking in the middle of the night and wanting to come to our bed. So he was in bed with me this morning. The two of us were sleeping in after Daddy left, and Allen wakes up, and says, "Mommy. TBS. The Boss Stinks." For those of you who don't know, that's a commercial on the station TBS for reruns of The Office.

So that's the way we started our day. A little weird, but fun. He played with his Chuggington trains downstairs, and then suddenly showed up with his pajama shirt off. Evidently he antagonized the dogs because they appeared in the bathroom while I was getting ready. Poor Murphy curled up right at my feet, while Mia jumped up on the bed in hopes she'd be safe there (something about throwing his rubber alligator, lizard, and snake at them, I think).

We took Daddy lunch, and Allen got to see the office dog, Dusty. He wanted to take her home. Renee said he could. We had to intervene and explain that there wasn't room for him at our house. "We can put her in the trunk," Allen said.

Onto Wal-Mart where we had some groceries to pick up, plus some glitter for my craft project I wanted us to take on. Of course, we had to visit the Cars area. We found a car and moved on to other things. Then as we were getting ready to check out we went past the How to Train Your Dragon display. After me telling him that we'd already gotten a toy today and maybe we could get this another time, Allen said -- very seriously -- "Mommy, I think I'd like to put this toy back and get a dragon instead." Well, how could I argue with that? Such a grown up reaction. So I bought him both.

Well, with a new dragon and a new car, we had little interest in the craft project (making snowflakes). Mommy ended up making them alone. She had far more fun than she should have (I love glitter!).

Tonight, after dinner, Allen "needed something sweet." So he got cookies ... notice how he's "two-fisting" it with the bag on his lap ...

xoxo,
AHC

Weekend Random

2010-12-19T22:27:00.002-05:00

Sorry, folks, no pictures. But I do have a few cute stories to share ...

Saturday morning was bad. Really bad. First of all, it was pouring out. Getting ready for service was challenging, as Allen couldn't find a certain car that he "needed." Crying ensued. We dragged him to the car. Then arrangements didn't quite work out the way we'd planned, or the way Allen wanted. So he threw a tantrum. In the middle of the Kingdom Hall. A foot-stomping, screaming, flailing tantrum. I dragged him to the car. After a talk (and discipline), he improved. We talked more at home. And everything was better.

Later, at Nana and Papa's, Allen came up to me and said, "Mommy, I want to have a talk in the living room about this car." I obediently followed him to the living room and knelt down to his level. "Mommy," he explained, "this car stays at Nana's." "Oh, did I put it in your backpack to take home last night?" I asked. "Yes," he replied. "I'm sorry," I said. Fortunately, he forgave me and all was OK.

This morning, he had to go pee-pee, and as he did, he let out a huge fart. "Now that's a fart," he stated. Then he dragged Murphy into the bedroom to play. Awhile later, Brian was coughing in the shower, and Allen, panic in his voice says, "Oh no! Daddy has the throwup bug!" It was so sweet.

Aunt Kristen, you'll love this! Before we left for meeting this morning, Allen looked at our calendar. He pointed to the 25th and said, "I know what we're doing on the 25th! We're going to see Aunt Kristen!" I'm not sure how he remembered that, but he did. And tonight he asked if we were sleeping in one of Aunt Kristen's guest rooms. I explained that we'd be sleeping at Uncle Peter and Aunt Eileen's. He said, "And then we'll go meet Aunt Kristen and Uncle Josh in the morning?" I think he might be a little excited about our trip.

This week should be interesting. Nana and Papa leave tomorrow for Pennsylvania to pick up Gigi. So Allen and I are manning the shop together on Tuesday and Wednesday. Fortunately, we have the Leapster and the help of the "girls" so I'm optimistic that it won't be horrible. Tomorrow, I think we're going to make snowflakes and put them up on our windows. And do laundry ...

xoxo,
AHC

Italian Nursery Rhyme

2010-12-17T22:39:00.001-05:00

As long as I can remember, my mom and Grandmom have shared an Italian nursery rhyme with us (and therefore we share it with all the children we love). I can't begin to spell it out in Italian, but in English, it basically says this:

Meow

The little cat got married

She made some cookies

She wouldn't give me any

Meow Meow Meow

Allen has been a fan of the nursery rhyme on and off since he was born ... and tonight he was asking me to to do it ... here's a video so you can see/hear how it goes ...

And here's Allen's version of it ...

I'm not sure which version I like better :)

xoxo,
AHC

Winter Break Kick-off!

2010-12-16T23:58:00.000-05:00

The official story is that to kick off Allen's Winter break, we had a sleepover. But the REAL reason is probably more like ... Mom's been sick since Monday night and she finally got to eat a real meal tonight after a late-ish evening with meeting and then we had to get takeout because she forgot to get anything ready for dinner and the meal made her feel nice and full and happy and snuggly and sleepy and it's already 10:30 and her child is still awake playing and doesn't want to go upstairs and go to sleep.

But whatever ... yay Winter Break ... and here's a cute picture of him asleep in our bed. Look at that mouth!!

xoxo,
AHC

Mean, Nasty Bug

2010-12-12T21:15:00.000-05:00

Shortly after I finished Allen's scarf and posted those pictures, the little man woke up vomiting. And it lasted until about 6:45 this morning. Talk about hurting Mommy and Daddy's hearts. Allen's only thrown up a handful of times since he was born, and never like this ... so we really felt bad for him.

And as weird as this sounds, I was so proud of him for how in tune he was with his body. Other than the first incident, he woke up in time and was able to avoid any messes. Of course, it helped that Mom and Dad were barely able to sleep and were very aware each time he became restless. We read his signals ... the loud breathing; the thrashing around; the moaning ... and were propping him up with the bucket in front of him in no time. Sorry if that's TMI. It's an odd thing to be proud of, but I'm happy with how well we handled it (I've always had visions of huge messes and the "sympathy factor" coming into play).

Of course, his bed is not remade so he's sleeping with us again tonight ... so I can't be too proud of my mad motherly skills :) I like to keep myself humble.

In crochet news, I've begun my third (yes third!) project. "Wristers" (aka fingerless gloves) for Aubrey. I'm sort of making up my own pattern here, so I hope she likes them. Then after that comes a scarf for Mommy, Brian (my first project was OK, but he'd like one a little more masculine), Daddy, and me. Then I'm taking requests :)

xoxo,
AHC

This is crocheting ... on Steroids

2010-12-11T22:59:00.000-05:00

Literally ... with my most recent illness combined with an arthritis flare-up, my doctor put me on Prednisone. I'm a wreck ... and very quick with a crochet hook.

Here's Allen's scarf:

He picked out the yarn himself :)

xoxo,
AHC

Isn't he too young?

2010-12-08T22:43:00.000-05:00

This morning on our way to school, Allen informed me that a boy at school (but not in his class) was knocking him down at recess. Through the discussion, Allen explained that this boy did not want to be friends with him -- had no interest in that -- he just insisted on knocking Allen down. He also told me that if he and one of his friends were playing together, they were able to knock this boy down.

I explained that he should tell the boy he couldn't be friends with him if he kept doing that. And that it wasn't right for he and his friend to push him down. That we should treat others the way we want to be treated.

He didn't quite seem satisfied. He proceed to ask me to come to his class with him and come with him to recess so I could see this boy.

I did stay in his class for awhile as he showed me several works. Once he seemed comforted and secure, I left. His teacher and I had a brief discussion, and she assured me that she's aware of the situation. And when Nana picked him up from school, his teacher assured her that he had a good day.

But then tonight at bedtime, he told me that the boy pushed him down again. I asked him if he told him to stop, and he said no. Then he said that I should come with him to school all day, so that I could help him (and protect him) from this boy.

Boy does the Mama Bear in me want to give this child a piece of my mind! But I know that's not the solution. What do I do? How do I handle this in the way that is best for Allen? Help!!

xoxo,
AHC

PS Photo from here.

Tonight's bedtime convo

2010-12-07T21:22:00.000-05:00

"Mommy, will you sing to me ... do you remember when you sang those songs to me when I was a baby and two and three ... and I'm going to be bigger and bigger as big as the house ... I don't think worms have families ... I'm whispering in case you're asleep so I don't wake you up .... Love you love you blanket Mommy."

This was pretty much the way the entire afternoon went, too. Didn't stop talking for more than about five minutes all day. He also fell out of his bed before we laid down to go to sleep. Scared the bejeebers out of him ... but he recovered nicely and quickly ...

I'm off to start on Allen's scarf ...

xoxo
AHC

My first crochet project

2010-12-07T21:19:00.000-05:00

It didn't turn out nearly as well as I'd hoped, but I guess it could have turn out worse. It's going to be Brian's, but because I'm, oh, a foot shorter than him, the angle of the pictures I took were "unflattering" so I have no pictures of him modeling it ....

What do ya'll think?

The promised photo ...

2010-12-06T22:10:00.000-05:00

That would be Yolonda surprising the heck out of me for our anniversary gift. She and Tony and the kiddos rock!

xoxo,
AHC

An Inconvenient Illness

2010-12-03T21:46:00.000-05:00

I have another sinus infection ... or maybe I didn't get rid of the first one ... anyway, once I'm feeling better I'll blog that awful picture of me with my mouth hanging open.

I promise ...

xoxo,
AHC

My November So Far: A list

2010-11-24T11:24:00.000-05:00

It's been a month like no other. So much to say, but not much time (and no pictures on my work computer). So I'll summarize with a list.

Tony & Yolonda surprised us with a weekend visit (Unattractive picture of me with my big ol' mouth open coming soon). Drove through the night to spend two days with us. And as if that wasn't enough, they also gave me a GORGEOUS handmade purse. We truly have the most wonderful and amazing friends.
Kristen and Josh came to visit. They got to see Tony & Yolonda too. And they spent a few more days with us too. It was great ... we played BezzerWizzer and had different drinks every night. Sadly, they also had to endure the next item.
In the midst of the visits, Allen got sick. Really sick. Doctor's visit revealed he had a double ear infection, sinus infection, and strep throat. Spent a week taking care of him.
I got sick. Sinus infection. Courtesy of Allen. At least I didn't get sicker.
Gigi (Grandmom) is convinced that she was robbed (again). Then she went into the hospital with Gall Stones, and had to have her Gall Bladder removed.
Mom and I drove up to be with Gigi. Spent five nights away from my boys.
Taught myself to crochet while away (with some help from Stephanie's tutoring four years ago). Making a scarf.
Came home to my beautiful boys, the little one hacking away.
Allen's sick again. Hoping it's just a cold.

I'm really hoping to get a little respite tomorrow. The shop will be closed. Maybe I can get some laundry done. And get some pictures posted. And take a nap ;)

xoxo,
Allegra

It was bound to happen ...

2010-11-03T18:05:00.000-04:00

Allen wearing my sunglasses. Unrelated to this post, but cute.

Well, actually, I'm referring to two different things, both of which "happened" today ...

The morning started out well enough. Allen in a great mood (after sleeping all night in his bed), relatively smooth ride to school, during which Allen replied to a question I asked him with, "Yeah baby!"

Then things started to go a little haywire. First, I received a phone call from my Mama letting me know that Gramma and fallen. She fell on her hip that she'd had replaced, and couldn't put any weight on it. Good news: she didn't hit her head; Bad news: she cracked her thigh bone, and was admitted to the hospital. I supposed it was bound to happen at some point.

Because Mama was still at the hospital with Gramma at Allen's pick up time, I closed the shop early and headed out to pick him up. As usual, he was excited to see me. He gleefully hopped in the car, ate his snacks, and then informed me that he "decided we should go to Dunkin' Donuts." He wanted to go inside and eat his donut there.

No sooner did we pay for his orange sprinkle donut, than he announced that he had to poop. I quickly asked the girl at the counter to hang onto the donut for us, and off we went to the bathroom. While we were in the bathroom (those of you know Allen well, know that when he has a "big job" we're usually in there awhile. Occasionally, playing games) I noticed that his eyes looked puffy. I made a mental note to keep an eye on it.

Twenty minutes later, we emerged from the bathroom and retrieved the donut.

As we arrived home, I noticed Allen kept sneezing, and he was definitely congested or something. I figured it was either allergies or he was getting sick. And I also noticed him repeatedly picking his nose. Several times, I told him to stop, and finally he said, "I'm trying to get this round thing out."

I looked up his nose. Saw something, but thought it might just be a big booger. Went to retrieve a Q-tip. It was unsuccessful. So then I got a flashlight and looked up there.
Me: Allen, did you stick something up your nose.
Allen: Yeah.
Me: What was it?
Allen: Bird seed, I think. From my school.

Thankfully, I was able to get it out with the help of a tissue and the aforementioned Q-tip. And when I called Brian, he said, you guessed it ... "it was bound to happen."

Hope ya'll had a better day :)

xoxo,
Allegra

Finally ... the Room Pics

2010-10-25T12:33:00.000-04:00

So I finally made myself take pics of Allen's room last night ... and now I'm going to share more pics than ya'll probably care to see :)

Here we go ...

The view from his door, and my proud boy.

The Bed

Close-up of the bed

New bookcase cubby (from Target)

Totally random picture of Allen's dragon Tattoo (from the Harvest Festival)

Of course we had to have Cars stuff ...

Cool alligator chalkboard

Chest of drawers topped with pics of family and friends

Future reading nook

Goodnight Moon Print (was a graduation gift for me back in 1995)

New Transportation lamp (from Target)

Starry Night print. Used to be in our room, but he learned about Vincent Van Gogh earlier this year at school, and has been obsessed with it ever since, so we gave it to him.

Yay! We got a toybox into his room (and out of the living room)!

xoxo,
AHC

It's those eyes ...

2010-10-20T21:59:00.000-04:00

Above is Allen's first self-portrait. Age 4, October 2010. His teacher, Ms. A, pointed out to us that we won't get many more drawings like this, since soon he'll learn the stick figure. But I love this drawing. Look at the eyes. Not only are they my boy's most striking feature (and, of course he knows this, since everyone remarks on them), but it occurs to me that it says something about how he views the world ... full of awe and wonderment over all he sees.

Ms. A also told us -- at our parent-teacher conference -- that Allen is confident speaking in front of the class (since he introduces himself to just about anyone, we were not surprised), and that he interacts with all the children -- even the shy ones. Our hearts swelled at the thought of our sweet boy caring about every child in his class, drawing out the shy ones ... we could not be more proud. Ms. A also mentioned that Allen loves geography (he knows the continents), is extremely enthusiastic (somehow, I'm not shocked), and is enjoying the pre-math works (whose child is he?).

In other news, my Mama is recovering from sinus surgery. Dr. Christian (the most wonderful doctor ever) told us that he cleaned out lots of junk from her sinuses (old nasty stuff too), and once he got that stuff cleaned out, he found polyps, which he also removed. She's in a lot of pain and is struggling with some nausea. And in true Cheryl fashion is extremely impatient about her recovery. But I think she's slowly accepting that it will take some time.

Soon I hope to backtrack to September and share with you details of the Farmer's Table and our anniversary trip to Greenville. Then I'll share with you the gifts I received ...

xoxo,
AHC

Absentee blogger

2010-10-13T23:18:00.002-04:00

Hi. It's been awhile, and, well, I could apologize, but ... I've done that before. Bottom line is ... TONS of blogworthy stuff is going on, but by the time I sit down at night to write about it, I'm exhausted. But I'll try ...

In case I don't get around to giving you more details ... here's what's been happening over the last month (in no particular order):

Allen's discovered that he likes the word, "stylish."
We had a delicious time in Greenville, SC (to celebrate our 10th anniversary)
In the past year, Allen's grown three inches, but he's only gained a pound and a half (oh how I wish!)
Nana (my mommy) is having sinus surgery tomorrow. I'm sad she'll have to go through the pain, but hopeful that this will be the end of the chronic sinus infections.
Allen LOVES to talk (and pray) about the Paradise.
I love to hear Allen talk (and pray) about the Paradise.
Allen is a little addicted to his Bubblegum-flavored Tylenol and his Orange-Cream flavored Mucinex. He keeps telling me that, "his fever is up," in hopes that he'll get more medicine.
Allen officially has real, big boy furniture. It's beautiful, and I ~~promise~~ hope to get pictures posted soon.
We sold Allen's baby furniture, which according to EVERYONE, means that I will now get pregnant. Nightmares have begun (don't get me wrong, I would adore a baby, but, um ... I just sold every last piece of baby paraphernalia I owned ... because we decided that we like our family of three just the way it is).
Allen's now going to school ALL day! And he loves it!
Brian totally rocks because he makes Allen's lunch every morning (along with coffee for me), straightens the house, and mixes me drinks when I've had a rough day.
I think I've caught Allen's cold ... so, I will now sign off and go to sleep.

Love to you all, and I promise to try to post more frequently. After all, I have so many stories and pictures to share ...

xoxo,
AHC

Up to my eyeballs

2010-09-08T09:46:00.000-04:00

Hey ya'll ... I apologize for my lack of posting. Right now I'm up to my eyeballs in Farmer's Table preparation. Like unpacking boxes ...

(All 26+ of them). And staging ...

And shopping for the perfect Farmhouse Chic outfit ...

I'll post a pic of the dress, once I decide which one it's going to be ....

So, basically, I'm super busy ... it's not that Allen's not doing hilarious things (because he is, as usual). It's just that I haven't had much time or leftover energy to blog about it. But I promise I'll try to catch up after Friday night ...

xoxo,
Allegra

Feelin' Groovy

2010-08-30T10:54:00.000-04:00

As some of you may know, due to some health complications, I've been under the weather, for oh six months or so. But, after finally visiting my doctor again and some adjustments to my medication, I'm finally feeling fabulous! I'd say I'm feeling like my old self again, but honestly, I don't remember the last time I felt this good!

Anyway, I don't know how long this feeling will last (hopefully for a long time), but I'm taking advantage of every good minute that I get! I apologize in advance if I get to happy and positive for ya'll, but honestly I just can't help it.

Armed with this new energy and a beautiful day, yesterday Brian, Allen, and I went for a lovely bike ride through our neighborhood. We rode past the river, and down by Brian's favorite piece of property facing the water. We marveled at how out of shape we were as we pushed ourselves to go over the smallest of hills. We discussed whether it was lack of practice or added weight that made us so much less steady on the bike (remember when you could ride, no-handed?). The wind blew through our hair, the sun warmed us (maybe a little too much), and Allen provided random commentary (at one point announcing, "I'm a grown man, baby" from his luxurious trailer hitched to Daddy's bike).

Then we stopped at the park. Oh the park ... how Allen has missed you! We played hide-and-seek, and swung on the swings ...

I even climbed over the top of the monkey bars, at Allen's request:

All in all it was a fabulous outing. So fabulous that we decided to ride our bikes to Nana and Papa's house for dinner. Dad made homemade Margaritas (boy were they strong), and Allen found some new shoes:

What a fantastic day!

xoxo,
Allegra

Katrina

2010-08-27T12:10:00.000-04:00

As I'm sure we're all aware, this weekend is the 5th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Honestly, I hadn't really given in much thought. I saw the news coverage this morning and watched with minimal interest.

And then I read this. And it moved me so much that I need to share it with you all. It's not just the story of Katrina that affected me, it's what Jen reminds us all to do. To not take things for granted, but to appreciate every moment. To open our eyes and see what -- and who -- is around us. And to enjoy it.

So often I get caught up in my every day life. I over-analyze myself and critique myself to the point where I no longer enjoy anything. I get tired and have to drag myself through my days, all the while wishing for the day to be over so I can go to bed.

But reading Jen's post today helped me to realize the futility in doing that. Why continue to beat myself up for what I'm not doing when I can enjoy all that I am able to do, all the happiness that is in my life?

Please, take a few minutes today to think of all who were affected by Katrina, and how their lives have been affected. And all that their experiences can teach us.

xoxo,
Allegra

Quiet and still

2010-08-26T11:48:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned recently, Allen is back to sleeping in his own room (with the exception of his request the other night). This has been successful primarily because Mommy snuggles with him in his bed until he falls asleep. He always does so quickly and peacefully, and last night I was able to capture his restful slumber on camera (plus his new sleeping companion).

Fun with Pixi

2010-08-23T22:06:00.000-04:00

So, as I mentioned before, I'm in love with my new toy -- the Palm Pixi. She's cute (like me?). She's little (like me). And she's pink (OK, not-so-much like me).

She's got a camera that's pretty good, though it's not as good as some other phones. She can record video. And, well, she's cute, she's little, and she's pink.

Anyway, she's definitely been my focus for the past several days, much to Brian's dismay. Allen doesn't seem to mind though ... he's been asking to take pictures and watch videos. He's even played with an app that I downloaded for him.

Here are a few highlights ...

What a day

2010-08-18T22:13:00.000-04:00

I have pictures to share, but honestly I'm too tired/lazy to upload them from my phone. They're not that great anyway. Just from us messing around last night with my new toy.

Today was a rough day.First thing this morning, we (the Joli girls -- me and Mom) found out that the design elements we've ordered for the Farmer's Table event probably won't get here in time (we're providing the event decor for it, and Southern Living is going to be there .... eeeek!). This means we have to redo the entire event design. Then, genius that I am, managed to lock my mom and me out of the shop during shop hours (we were doing a site review with the fabulous girl's organizing the aforementioned event, and I walked out without the keys to the shop). So we had to drive all the way to Brian's work to get his key so that we could get back in.

Immediately after work, Brian and I were off to our Parent Orientation at Allen's school. This was actually really nice (except for the teeny, tiny chairs we had to sit on which was awful). Allen's teacher, Ms. A., is so unbelievably awesome and enthusiastic that it makes me want to be in the class every day.

If Allen were writing this blog, he would tell you that the highlight of the day was when Mom and Dad came back to pick him up and they had the much-anticipated Chuggington toys with them. Allen's face lit up as soon as he saw what was in the box. He begged, pleaded, and tantrumed in an attempt to have us set up the train tracks tonight (mind you, it was after 8:00 when we opened the package, and we were still at Nana and Papa's). He also examined the back of one of the packages and began telling us about all the "chuggers" he didn't have yet. Then he said that he "wished" he had "all the things for Chuggington." So glad to know he's grateful for his gift :)

Tell me friends, do you have children who have started/will be starting school? What are you doing to prepare? Do your children show appreciation for their toys/gifts, or do they beg for more? What are your strategies for dealing with these?

xoxo,
AHC

Growing Up

2010-08-17T09:57:00.000-04:00

Allen working on his computer like his Mommy does

Have you missed us? I've missed you. I wish I could give you a good reason for my blogging absence all summer, but I really have none. A variety of factors contributed to my being away, but my new-school-year-goal is to blog regularly.

So Allen's official first day of school was yesterday, though he got to sneak in a a couple days early last week to get acclimated again (since he came to school late last school year). He's doing beautifully. Absolutely zero anxiety about school. It's like he never left. What's beautiful about the Montessori program is that children are in the same class from age 3-6, so they develop relationships and friendships with children that continue throughout the program. This seems to work beautifully with Allen's character ... which makes for a seamless transition.

In other news, Allen is successfully sleeping in his own room, in a temporary big boy bed. One of the contributors to my absence here was that Allen was sleeping with us every night. But we've successfully transitioned him back to his room, and now he's ready for his new big boy furniture. We've ordered it, and it should arrive sometime in October.

As usual, Allen is full of amusing antics, stories, and sayings (right now, he likes to say "you wear me out"). I won't attempt to regale you with the stories of the summer, but I promise to keep you posted going forward.

Have a wonderful day, and please comment. I've missed you all so much, and look forward to reading your kind words again.

xoxo,

AHC

Firsts, Seconds, and more

2010-06-16T16:26:00.000-04:00

June has been a busy month so far. Allen's out of school, so more time is being spent with him, which I love. But it means I have less energy and time to update ya'll on what's going on. So, to update, I'll provide you with a list of the highlights ....

Kristen the Smart Chicken came for a visit. Allen was totally smitten.
Allen's begun regularly praying for himself. The other night, in addition to thanking Jehovah for his food, he prayed for the paradise to come so he could see his Pop-Pop (my father-in-law who passed away one week before we discovered we were pregnant).
Allen's struggling with the change in his routine. Which has meant lots of, um, challenging days for us.
We're in the middle of a ridiculous heat wave (heat index between 105-110), so we're spending a lot of time indoors. See the above bullet point ...
Brian and I have pre-shopped for our upcoming anniversary gifts. We're celebrating 10 years this October. Very exciting.
I discovered that my identity has been stolen. Again. This is delaying our tax refund. Which is supposed to be financing the aforementioned presents. Hmmm .... we may be celebrating a little late this year :)
For the very first time ever, I was bitten by a dog. It hurts. A lot. And it bled. A lot. And it wasn't even a big mean dog. It was an older long-haired Dachshund. I think he was grumpy because of the heat.
The other day Allen was laying on the couch with Murphy. It was cute. Then Allen sat up and informed me that Murphy was wet. I looked down to see a rather large wet spot on Murphy's side. I asked Allen if he drooled on Murphy. He replied, "No, I did it with this," and pointed to his tongue. Disgusting, I know. The worst part is that he was laying right next to me, and I didn't see him do it (even though I was checking on him frequently).
Allen and I went on a date yesterday. To see Marmaduke. Don't bother seeing it. It was pretty dumb. But we were cool. And Allen got to eat Dots. And I got to eat movie theater popcorn. So it wasn't all bad.

That's all for now ....

xoxo,
AHC

P.S. I'll have a picture of Murphy's tongue bath soon :)

Since you've waited so patiently

2010-06-01T16:58:00.001-04:00

Here's the video of my handsome boy singing "My Favorite Things". Sadly, it was very difficult to hear the children, but you can see my boy trying his best and holding his own. The lyrics (modified) are below.

My Favorite Things
Performed by the Morning Glory Class at EC Montessori
New words written by the teachers and children

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with string
These are a few of my favorite things

Ice cream at the airfield and Pigeon Point Park
Playing at the beach at Hunting Island State Park
Alligators at The Chocolate Tree
These are a few of my favorite things
(repeat)

When the pollen falls
When the gnats gnaw
When the thunder claps
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

What do you think?

2010-05-29T12:47:00.001-04:00

OK, so I've tried to figure out how to edit the video so that only my sweet boy's face is visible, and I've been unsuccessful. So I'd like everyone to vote. Should I post the video (which shows other people's children, whose permission I did not obtain), or not?

Vote on the right. Voting ends at 11:59 PM on Monday night, so hurry and give me your opinion, please.

xoxo,
ahc

Amazing

2010-05-25T21:55:00.001-04:00

My boy was awesome tonight. He's exhausted and sleeping next to me as I type.
I'm exhausted too ... all that excitement wore me out!
Stay tuned for the video ... hopefully. Trying to figure out how to crop out the other kiddos from the video, since I have no editing software ....

xoxo,
AHC

Pickled Pigs Feet

2010-05-25T15:06:00.000-04:00

I'm giddy today. Allen's first stage performance is tonight. I haven't been this excited in a long time (of course winning Best Gift Shop helps, too). We will videotape the performance, so I won't tell you what he's doing. But I will share some other cute things he's said lately ....

Last night, he still had soap on his legs after the bath water drained. So I filled his bath cup with water and rinsed him off. He said, "Thank you Mommy. You're so kind!"

A little while later, I was singing a song to him, and he said, "That's enough! That's enough!" Brian asked him why he didn't want me to sing anymore, and he said "Because it's annoying."

Last week, as we were walking into school, we had the following conversation:
Allen: Mommy
Mommy: Yes, Allen.
Allen: I love you.
Mommy: I love you too, buddy.
Allen: And Mommy ...
Mommy: Yes
Allen: I really like your outfit today.
Mommy: Thanks, Allen. You look pretty handsome yourself.
Allen: I know.

Here are a couple random shots of my handsome boy ...

Stay tuned for a recap of tonight's performance.

xoxo,
AHC

PS I just realized I forgot to post about the Title. Lately, when Allen is insistent that he doesn't want to eat, but I know he's hungry, I'll say, "I know what you want ... Pickled Pigs Feet." This continues into suggesting all sorts of gross foods (like fried grasshoppers, etc.). Now, he says, "Pickled Pigs Feet" and cracks up in anticipation of what will come next.

Stormy

2010-05-25T14:51:00.000-04:00

We had a bad storm Sunday night. Fortunately, Allen's rain boots had just arrived ...

but this storm was so bad that it was too dangerous to be out playing in it. And besides, Allen was terribly frightened of all the thunder, lightning, and wind. And the fact that we lost power.

While I'm not usually frightened of storms, this one was downright scary. But I tried to remain calm and reassuring so as not to scare Allen more.

As I discovered Monday morning, I was probably right to be uneasy about the storm. While we were very fortunate and sustained no damage to our home, others in our neighborhood did not fare as well. Several cars have been crushed under tree limbs; roofs have been damaged; and we have lost large limbs from some of our beautiful live oaks.

Here's some of the aftermath right near our house ...

Yes, those are two trees completely uprooted.
And here's some residual flooding. In the background, you may be able to see the dirt and sand coating the street from the previous night's flooding.

Fortunately, we did not experience any true devastation, and all are safe and sound. But we sure had some excitement for the evening ...

xoxo,

AHC

Introspection and Hope

2010-05-25T14:38:00.000-04:00

I read this post last week, and became inspired to be more hopeful. I generally am not a particularly hopeful person. I prefer to be a realist, preparing myself for disappointment rather than to come slamming down when something doesn't go my way.

Besides, being hopeful has a history of backfiring on me. Without going into too much boring detail, I have a tendency to have rather devastating days (hours/weeks) after a particularly good mood or day (many times due to my own self-destructive tendencies; but on occasion through events out of my control).

Anyway, thanks to some particularly introspective mornings (I love the quiet drive home from Allen's school), I have recognized my habit of sabotaging my positive mental state, and am determined to be happy and in the moment, if not truly hopeful.

Speaking of being hopeful -- something I dared not be with regard to the Beaufort Gazette Reader's Choice Awards -- I'm shocked, awed, and honored to tell you that our little shop, Joli, won as Best Gift Shop. Not only that, but most other fabulous businesses in our Habersham Marketplace won as well.

Thank you for patiently reading this somewhat random post. Now onto more interesting things ...

xoxo,
AHC

Why and Jam Session

2010-05-11T16:51:00.000-04:00

Being a three-year-old means asking lots of questions. For instance, Allen just asked me:

"Why is a binky called a binky? Why is Mommy called Mommy? Why is a computer called a computer?"

This is why I'm always tired ....

Last night Brian and I were having a discussion about a song lyric. Which led me to Google the song. Which led me to playing the song. I am not going to share which song it is because, well, it's not a very nice song. But it's got an awesome dance beat.

Anyway, as soon as the song started, Allen started dancing. Then about half way through the song, he said, "I need my drum!"

So we got his drum (and other musical instruments), replayed the song, and had a hilarious little jam session, just the three of us.

In the midst of the jam session, I said something about getting the camera. But we were having so much fun that we didn't want to stop to get it. So, sorry, no pictures.

xoxo,
AHC

They love me they really love me!

2010-05-07T11:52:00.000-04:00

Guess what! Our shop, Joli Home & Events, has been nominated as the "Best Gift Shop" in our local paper's Reader's Choice Awards! I nearly wet myself this morning, I was so excited!

If you love me as much as your comments indicate that you do, would you please head on over and vote for us?

Thanks so much!

xoxo,
AHC

Quotable Allen

2010-05-04T21:50:00.001-04:00

Heard this week:

At school yesterday ...
Miss C -- a teacher at Allen's school -- told me that her son (who just joined Allen's class) told her that he was going to play with Allen that day.
I replied, "Oh Allen, do you have a new friend?"
Allen nodded his head, and then announced, "And I wiped a boogie on him!"

This morning while getting dressed for school ...
Allen (to Daddy): You're Mr. Naked Pee.
Daddy: Well then you're Mr. Naked Poop.
Allen: We have to go get our costumes!

(Do all three-year-olds find bathroom talk hilarious?)

Tonight while explaining why he needed to get in our bed ...
Sometimes when my feet get in bed, they get scared.

xoxo,
AHC

Nana and Papa's Anniversary Dinner

2010-05-04T21:40:00.000-04:00

My parents' (aka Nana and Papa) anniversary was April 19th. They've been married 41 years (awesome, I know). They have a beautiful home that has been exquisitely decorated by my interior designer mom. Buying presents for them is not an easy task because ... well, after 41 years, they pretty much have everything they need or want. Plus, Mom's very picky.

So rather than buying them presents, Brian and I decided to make them dinner. Allen provided a suggestion for the menu: chocolate cake. Good. That decision was made. However, now we had to come up with the appetizer and entree portions of the meal. We thought and thought about what they really loved, and came up with the following menu

Raw Oysters Served with a Ginger-Lime Relish and a Horseradish Sauce

Mixed Field Greens with Dried Cranberries and Maytag Blue Cheese

Moules Fromage Bleu

(Mussels in a Blue Cheese and White Wine Broth with Bacon and Shallots)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte

Candy Dish

Here are some pictures of the delicious food.

Raw Oysters served on Mom and Dad's Screened-in Porch.

(We got the buckets at Target for $1 each)

Moules Fromage Bleu

Just one of the four buckets filled with Mussel shells

The Chocolate-Peanut Butter Torte (made from scratch thankyouverymuch)

Mom's Candy Dish with JuJu Bees and Red Vines

I would never have had the guts to do this if not for my very brave and talented husband. He reassured me constantly that we could pull it off, and he patiently shucked three dozen oysters that evening. Thanks to him we were able to pull off (what I hope was) a lovely evening.

xoxo,
AHC

Beep beep

2010-04-27T22:09:00.000-04:00

Today Aunt Kristen taught Allen what onomatopoeia is. Because I bought him a book full of it. Allen can say it perfectly. He can't say "think" or "light" consistently (he says "fink" and "wight"), but he can say onomatopoeia perfectly.

xoxo,

AHC

Memorial 2010

2010-04-21T21:30:00.000-04:00

Handsome boy.

So good.

Asked if we were going to pass the cookies.

"They're not cookies. It's unleavened bread," I explained.

"Unlemoned bread? Are there lemons in it?" he asked.

He passed the emblems. So carefully.

We were very proud.

It was a beautiful evening.

xoxo,

AHC

Kindred Spirits at the Beaufort Twilight Run

2010-04-20T22:26:00.000-04:00

Towards the end of March, we got a visit from a wonderful long-time friend, and her beautiful six-year-old son. It was the first time they met Allen (well, technically, they met him while he was still in my belly). From the moment of their first meeting at the airport, Allen and H got along famously.

It took Allen only a few hours to declare that H was his best friend. And H handled the near-worship that Allen bestowed upon him beautifully. H was patient and kind. He made sure Allen was entertained and included. It was one of the sweetest things I've ever witnessed.

H and his mom, P, arrived just in time for the 2nd Annual Beaufort Twilight Run (benefiting Riverview Charter School). Sadly, I only captured one picture of the boys together (I know ... it's awful, stop shaking your heads in disapproval). It was as they were getting ready for the Kids Fun Run. Which, in the ultimate display of kindness, H walked with Allen, even though I know he really wanted to run.

After the race, Allen, H, and "the girls" got airbrush "tattoos" (OK, and me too. I got a ladybug on my cheek). Here are some pics ...

More to come soon!

xoxo,

AHC

Returning soon ...

2010-04-19T11:02:00.000-04:00

Many many apologies to my dear readers for my recent absence .... stay tuned this week. I promise to share lots of pictures and some stories of what's been happening the last month or so!

xoxo,

AHC

2010-03-17T22:13:00.000-04:00

Lots has been happening at the Craig house lately, and I've been remiss in posting. Please accept my apologies. Here's the latest ...

Allen is learning what letters words begin with. He announced to us last week that "mail starts with 'M'. Mail and Malcolm start with 'M'." He knows what letter most words start with. It's amazing. He's a genius.

He says "masty" instead of "nasty." (Last night, he said about his chicken and green bean dinner, "Pew, this is masty!")

He still says "wife" and "wive" instead of "life" and "live."

He says, "fink" instead of "think."

He still loves my hair and loves to snuggle with Mommy.

He is addicted to his binky.

He's almost too big to fit into my lap.

He makes me wait for hugs and kisses.

He likes to tell stories while walking around in circles. Tonight he regaled us with a story about his class "going on safari."

He loves Cheetos, Mike & Ikes, and fruit snacks. And chocolate milk (most often in the form of NutriPals). He eats little else. It makes me feel like a bad Mom.

He has started reciting the fruitage of the spirit and singing the ABCs and "Life Without End at Last" with me at bedtime again (or Wife Wifout End at Wast). Then he snuggles against me for a few moments before saying, "I'm weady (ready)," and climbing into bed.

He still has gorgeous big blue eyes.

His hair is getting darker.

He's a big boy :(

Some pictures for you to enjoy ...

He requested I take a picture of him with his binky.

A close up.

In the tub tonight.

Smiling in the tub.

Snuggling with Mommy.

xoxo,
AHC

Looking up

2010-03-10T15:11:00.000-05:00

(photo by Delexed)

Thanks so much everyone for your wise advice and kind words last week when I was having my "bad day." I'm feeling much better now, thanks in part to all your smart suggestions. Ultimately, it took me a few days to get completely back to normal, and I've discovered that I don't like to have my routine disrupted, but now things are looking up once again.

Speaking of looking up, if you're having a down day, just listen to this gem of a song by Ingrid Michaelson.

Hannah shared her go to song with me when she's feeling low. How about the rest of you? What do you listen to to cheer you up?

xoxo,
AHC

Helmet Head

2010-03-10T14:00:00.001-05:00

Spring has officially sprung here in Beaufort, and that means that Allen and I have started enjoying the outdoors again. In fact, yesterday, we spent just about the entire afternoon out of doors.

We started with almost taking a bike ride. First, on Allen's trike (he subsequently decided he'd rather not pedal), then on Mom's bike ... until she saw how far it was buried in the shed (Daddy will have to fish it out for them). Just because the bike ride got canceled, doesn't mean we can't still wear the helmet, though.

He wore it while he rolled around in the sand, and poured sand all over himself.

Then it protected his head while he poured rocks over himself.

Fortunately, he decided not to wear it to the park. Because, honestly, Mom would have been mortified. We enjoyed a snack (or picnic) at the park, and then played for awhile. Mom almost took him down the slide, but chickened out at the last minute. Can't get past that claustrophobia (it's one of those tube slides).

Then we were off to see Miss Nancy at The Storybook Shoppe. The best place in the world (other than our shop, of course). And we hadn't seen Miss Nancy since her return from Australia. Allen immediately found the little table at the back and started working on some Curious George puzzles, while Mommy and Miss Nancy caught up and discussed appropriate books for a certain six-year-old who is coming to visit soon. After a long visit, we left the shoppe with two Dr. Seuss books.

We got home just in time for Daddy's arrival, and then walked back up to the Marketplace to dine at our favorite local haunt, Maggie's. Bad idea. After the busy afternoon we'd had, Allen was too tired to sit still or behave at dinner. I won't go into detail, but let's just say it involved shoes on the table and screaming. Oh, and telling the owner that he didn't like the food. Not embarrassing at all ....

On the way home, Allen informed us that the word mail starts with the letter M. "Mail and Malcolm start with M," he explained. Genius. We quizzed him on a few more words, and he got most of them right. Child prodigy, don't you think?

We ended the evening with a casual family worship viewing of the David video (in our bed. Where the only DVD player in the house is).

All in all, it was a good day. A very good day.

xoxo,

AHC

Pennsylvania Trip 2010: The Last Day

2010-03-10T12:58:00.000-05:00

In the fog of my bad mood last Thursday, I completely forgot to post about the last day of our Pennsylvania Trip. Many many apologies. Here are the highlights of our last day.

My 88-year-old grandmother (aka Gigi) chasing Allen around her house.

Gigi and Allen having a calm moment.

Allen growling while Dana and Chico pose nicely for the camera.

Allen and Ava getting down.

Allen singing his heart out.

Ava blowing a kiss (I think).

Avery enjoying my Italian nursery rhyme.

Aren't Ava and Avery delicious? Allen had a great time chatting it up and playing with Ava that evening. Thanks to T&T for a great evening. And thanks to D&D for drinks. We love you and miss you all!

xoxo,

AHC

Bad Day

2010-03-04T20:22:00.001-05:00

I'm having a bad day. A colossally bad day. I woke up in a miserable mood. And I've stayed in a funk all day, into this evening. Maybe it's because I'm fighting getting sick, or because I burned the bejeebers out of my fingers, or maybe it's just some deep underlying angst that surfaces now and then.

All I know is that I want to get out of this bad mood. But I don't know how. I tried my usual go-tos: singing along to music in the car, snuggling with Allen, napping on the couch, but nothing has worked so far. I still snapped at Brian (which made me feel worse) and snapped at Allen (which made me feel way worse), and felt like punching something all day ....

So now, I'm sitting in my cozy office, listening to Pandora, and sipping a glass of wine. I sincerely hope that this fixes me. If not, I may have to send the boys away for longer than the meeting tonight, so they don't have to put up with me.

Tell me friends, what do you do to snap out of a bad mood? Any tried-and-true strategies? Please share!

xoxo,

AHC

Pennsylvania Trip 2010: Random Photos

2010-03-04T19:53:00.000-05:00

Here's the last of my Pennsylvania recaps. Some photos that I took throughout the trip that didn't fit into the other posts ... most are of Elijah (since Kristen criticized that I wasn't taking enough pictures of him).

Elijah looking cute

Allen in a too-big hat

The biggest meatloaf I've ever seen

Elijah eating cake

Elijah chilling out in his jumper

xoxo,
AHC

Pennsylvania Trip 2010: Playing in the Snow

2010-03-04T19:45:00.000-05:00

It snowed Thursday, so we bundled up the boys and Brian took them in the back yard to sled. They had a great time until they sledded right into the creek at the bottom of the hill. That was the end of playing in the snow.

Here are some photo highlights. I think they speak for themselves ...

xoxo,
AHC

Pennsylvania Trip 2010: Baby Love Wednesday

2010-03-03T22:31:00.003-05:00

Wednesday was one of two days to visit friends. And it was a day of babies! First up was lunch with Kathie and her little loves:

Connor

Claire

Allen holding Claire (he informed Kathie, "I like your babies.")

Next we were off to see Jenn and Amy. We hadn't seen either of them in over a year, so we were very very excited. Amy took a liking to Brian ...

Isn't she gorgeous?

We ended the day at Tim and Annie's, where we ate delicious food and watched Shrek by the fire. Here I am with the boys ...

And here's Elijah jumping around naked on the couch ...

It was a great day. Nothing like spending time with good friends (even if it wasn't nearly long enough).

xoxo,

AHC

Pennsylvania Trip 2010: Highlights so far

2010-02-22T23:50:00.000-05:00

As is the case with most visits of which Owen is involved, he is one of the highlights. The boy is as charming as ever now that he can speak in words that we can (sometimes) understand. And for some reason he loves his Aunt "Eggy." And he loves for Aunt Eggy to take "Owen picture." So I did. And I shot some video, too.

(Owen decided Aunt Eggy needed to see his Yo Gabba Gabba Brobee underwear)

Allen and Owen are getting along much better than their last visit together, though there has still been some clashing and competition. They have been virtually inseparable since our arrival. It's really very very sweet.

Yesterday afternoon was Stephanie's surprise baby shower (yes, we did surprise her). She got lots of nice stuff, and so did Owen and Elijah (and even Allen).

Weekend wanderings and snowy adventures

2010-02-19T21:47:00.000-05:00

What are you all up to this weekend, my friends? The 3rd Annual Habersham Chili Cook-off is tomorrow, and mom and dad are entering the "Shopgirls Chili" in the competition. I'm excited to hear how they do in the competition and to hear all about how busy we were at the shop.

I'll have to hear about it because Brian, Allen, and I are off on a snowy adventure ... up to Pennsylvania to visit family and friends. While no snow storms are forecast, there is a 30% chance of snow for five of the seven days we are going to be there.

Brian is very excited about Allen seeing the snow. He plans on taking him sledding and playing in the snow with him. I plan on watching from inside while sipping hot coffee or tea. I think it's beautiful to look at, but I'm not much for the cold weather.

I'll be taking lots of pictures while I'm there (I love watching Allen with his cousins), and I should be able to post while I'm gone, so stay tuned for snowy adventure posts.

xoxo,
AHC

I miss

2010-02-19T21:34:00.000-05:00

Allen has been telling me, "I miss you," a lot. So much that I've realized that he doesn't actually understand what the word "miss" means. I think he thinks it's interchangeable with "love." So what, you're probably saying. Well, it helps to know this when I tell you the following story.

Lately, Allen's been wanting to "answer in the microphone" at meetings. But he doesn't want to answer what we prepare for him. He wants to answer something else. Last night, he wanted to say "I miss Jehovah ... and H and O and P."(well, he said their entire names, not the letters). He was whimpering about answering, so I let him raise his hand, and hoped he would say what I wanted him to ...

He raised his hand .... Papa (who was conducting the Congregation Bible Study) called on him ... the microphone was brought to his little mouth ... and he said ... nothing. Not a word. Then he whispered to me, "I want to say something else."

At least he didn't say what he told me he wanted to say, right? But then, the poor guy cried in the back for 10 minutes. I felt so bad for him. I didn't know what to do ... I know he wants to answer, but he can't just say anything ....

So I'm reaching out to my friend P ... how did you help H learn how to answer at the meetings? Did he struggle with wanting to say random things? Anyone else have any advice for me?

xoxo,
AHC

Little Opera Aficianados

2010-02-19T12:25:00.000-05:00

So yesterday was the big day -- the day I visited Allen's class and told them all about Italian Opera and La Traviata. I was so nervous. Almost more nervous than giving a talk at the Hall. I couldn't believe that 26 little faces could make me so nervous, but they did. What if they asked me a question I couldn't answer? What if they hated the story? What if they were bored?

Right away I got them involved. Two little girls passed out the puppets -- Alfredo for the boys and Violetta for the girls. We practiced saying Opera Seria and Opera Buffa. We all said the characters' names and the name of the opera.

They LOVED the music, and had a blast holding up their puppets as they heard Alfredo and Violetta sing. They laughed and danced their puppets around. They all said "Ewwww" when I told them that Alfredo and Violetta fell in love; and one adorable little boy wanted to know if they kissed.

The children were so well behaved and polite. They all participated when I asked them to repeat certain words; they all told me "grazie mille" for coming in to share opera with them.

And of course, watching Allen participate was the highlight for me. He was able to sit next to me on the floor (I was in a little chair), and throughout my presentation he would lean over and hug my leg at various times. Once, he whispered, "I love you, Mommy." He was so excited that I was there.

Overall, I think it was a success, and Miss Avril was very kind to me. In fact, she had some of the older kids draw pictures of Alfredo and Violetta, and all the kids signed a thank you card that they made for me. It's beautiful, and I'm touched.

Do you like opera? If so, which is your favorite??

Snow, Singing, and Cupcakes

2010-02-13T22:08:00.000-05:00

We awoke to a gorgeous morning with the snow already melting. So sadly, we had no chance to play in it. But we did get a picture of it before it was all gone ...

Since we slept in this morning, we lazed around the house in our pajamas for awhile before getting ready for our day ... Allen serenaded us with some of his made-up songs, and I was able to catch one on video .... (which isn't uploading, so I'll have to try later).

As planned, we ran errands, but first we ate a delicious lunch at a new place called Shoofly Kitchen. I had the fruit and nut wrap and it was scrumptious. They have a cute little boxed lunch for kids that includes multi-colored goldfish. Allen was thrilled.

Allen has outgrown his dress shoes, so we went to the local shoe store -- Lipsitz -- to purchase a new pair for him (I'm all about supporting local shops ... have you heard of the 3/50 Project?). I love the owner of the shop because he really knows what he's doing, and he takes time to make sure the shoes fit well. And he interacted beautifully with Allen.

Anyway, I was able to get all my supplies for my Italian opera project that I'm working on for Allen's school. Allen's class is learning all about Italy this month, and one of the things being introduced to them is Italian opera. I will be visiting the class this week to tell them about opera and then to tell them the story of an Italian opera. I decided I should show up with visual aids, since we're dealing with 3-5-year-olds.

Now, I'm not sure how familiar you are with Italian operas, but they're pretty much all focused on sex and death. So I've had quite a time trying to find one that I could make appropriate for this age group. Originally, I'd planned on The Marriage of Figaro (sounds innocent enough, right), but it was so inappropriate that I couldn't find anything redeeming in it. So now I've settled on La Traviata -- a love story about a Courtesan who dies of Tuberculosis. I know I know ... what am I thinking, right? But at least I can tell it as a love story and end it before she dies. And we won't mention her occupation.

Back to my visuals ... I'm not finished yet, but I have made my little figures of the main characters of the opera. Aren't they cute?

I'll show the completed project once I get it finished.

Finally, Allen got "pupcakes" at the grocery store today. What are they, you ask? I didn't know either. Dad had to translate for me .... Cupcakes (how did I not know that). I think he really enjoyed it, don't you?

Then he sat next to me on the couch. I called to Brian in the kitchen, "Could you please bring me some water, babe?" And then Allen says, "Can you get me some chocolate milk, honey?"

I think that's all for tonight. Hope you're having a wonderful weekend, my loves!

xoxo,
AHC

Tool Fixer & Snow

2010-02-12T22:32:00.000-05:00

Allen decided to get his tools out this afternoon. He played for hours with them. He has the Handy Manny Workbench toy, so we built a boat, a robot, and a birdhouse together. Then he walked around with his tool belt on (and tools in it), wielding a variety of tools in his hand, saying "I'm a tool fixer." He was very cute. Sadly I have no pictures of Allen the "tool fixer" to share.

As we were getting Allen ready for bed, it started to snow. It's still snowing out there. "The Girls" were so excited they went for a walk in it, and stopped at our house. O and Brian threw some snow at each other. Then they all came in to warm themselves for a few minutes by the fire.

Wanna see some pictures?

Isn't it pretty? Of course, I'm not too thrilled with it, given that Brian's driving in it right now (on his way to pick up Papa at the airport). I'm not worried about his ability ... just the road conditions ... it hasn't snowed here in 10 years.

I think some romping in the snow will be called for tomorrow morning, don't you? Then I have to work on my Italian Opera project (I'll share more once it's completed). Tomorrow night, we'll head to Maggie's Pub to sample their new menu (I may have to try the Beef Curry). And we'll be going in service Sunday after the meeting.

What are you up to this weekend, my friends?

xoxo,
AHC

Darling Boy

2010-02-11T23:17:00.000-05:00

Allen is displaying is boyish-ness lately. Potty humor -- check. Running around like a crazy person -- check. Sticking his fingers up his nose -- check.

And in spite of our best efforts to tame him, he still finds it hilarious to talk about pee-pee and poopy and to chase Murphy around the house and to shove his fingers up his nose like there's candy up there.

So the other night we're in the midst of our bedtime routine. Allen is in his pajamas and on my lap, and we're getting ready to say a prayer. But the finger is up his nose. Again.

"Get your finger out of your nose," I say.

He takes it out.... And then he wipes it on my cheek.

My jaw drops, shocked at such behavior. Brian falls over laughing.

How do I respond to that?

Tell me, friends, do you have experience with "boy" behavior? How do you handle potty humor? How about fingers up the nose? Please, share your suggestions!

xoxo,
AHC

P.S. He cried tonight at the meeting because he didn't get to "answer into the microphone." He also told me he wanted to say "dinosaurs" and "I like to eat candy" for his answers.

Super Bowl Highlights

2010-02-09T21:38:00.001-05:00

Some photographic highlights of our Super Bowl party ....

Allen and Cai chilling out (can you believe how big he's gotten?).

Allen and two of his favorite girls working on his Eric Carle puzzle.

Allen's other favorite girl (love this picture).

Tasha, Cai, and me (it's an awful picture of me, but cute of Tasha).

Allen and Cai crawling around on the floor.

Renee and Lili (the girls' Mom).

The men watching the game.

All us girls chatting in the dining room.

Tasha and her nephew.

The boys up to mischief of one kind or another.

xoxo,

Allegra

PS All pictures taken by "the girls."

Making Meatballs

2010-02-09T21:25:00.000-05:00

Nana made her famous Sweet and Sour Meatballs for the Super Bowl Party. Allen helped ...

After he finished helping with the meatballs, he sat down to work on his Eric Carle puzzle. Here it is after he put it together all by himself.

Funky Dance Moves

2010-02-04T20:54:00.000-05:00

Three short clips of the kid dancing to Yo Gabba Gabba ... the strangest, yet most entertaining kids' show ever ...

Toilet Thoughts

2010-02-02T20:25:00.000-05:00

As Allen sat on the toilet tonight, he called me in to him:

"Mommy, I want you."

"Yes baby," I said, walking into the bathroom.

"I missed you," he said, looking up at me with those blue eyes.

Laughing, I replied, "I missed you too."

He smiled. Then he said, "Are you my friend?"

"Yes!" I replied.

Another smile. "Good."

After another few minutes, he called to us again from the toilet ...

"What is Jehovah doing up in heaven?" he wondered, pointing up to the ceiling. "Is he playing games?"

The mind of a 3-year-old ....

oh fine

2010-01-31T20:48:00.001-05:00

i'll show you the stupid picture!

It's not that exciting ... though to give credit, it was taken by a 3-year-old. So the fact that it's in focus and that any part of me in the picture is pretty impressive.

xoxo,
AHC

Park

2010-01-29T09:39:00.000-05:00

For the second time this week, Allen has allowed me to take him to the park (he briefly boycotted me in favor of "the girls"). This time I thought to bring the camera (I'm occasionally on top of things).

It was a relatively brief visit (bathroom emergency), but we managed to do a lot anyway ... like throw rocks ...

and swing from the monkey bars ...

and ride on the horse and "motorcycle"

The best part about going to the park with Allen is he wants Mommy to do all of these things with him. So I get to be a kid again swinging from monkey bars and bouncing on a horse and a bike (that I'm convinced I will one day break). Allen took a picture of me swinging from the monkey bars, but the adult in my decided that picture didn't need to be posted.

xoxo,

AHC

Haircut

2010-01-19T21:46:00.000-05:00

Allen got his hair cut on Saturday ...

xoxo,

AHC

Ode to Papa

2010-01-19T21:39:00.000-05:00

I don't know if ya'll know this, but my dad -- aka Papa -- can be quite hilarious at times. And most of the time it's unintentional. For example ...

I don't remember why, but at some point last Friday night, we all broke into Queen's "We Will Rock You." Except, Papa sang,

"We shall we shall overcome you."

Think he got his songs mixed up ...

And that same evening, he asked us about a wireless commercial he'd seen with,

"a guy in a three piece suit who answers his phone, 'This is Foofa Foof, who's this?' ... Are we supposed to know who that guy is?"

Anyone know the commercial he's referring to?

xoxo,

Allegra

Latest Gem

2010-01-19T21:27:00.000-05:00

Last Friday night, Allen marched into the kitchen and announced,

"Somebody is not comfortable with a dinosaur and a cheerio."

Genius. Pure genius.

xoxo,

AHC

P.S. He then proceeded to walk around the kitchen island and regale us with a fifteen-minute story that was mostly nonsense sprinkled with some kids' names from his class.

Play-Doh, Finger Paints, and Underwear

2010-01-14T21:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I bought Allen Play-Doh, finger paints, and underwear. He loved all three. Here are the highlights:

He put the underwear on his head himself. And asked Daddy to wear a pair too.

Cookies

2010-01-06T22:03:00.000-05:00

(Photo: www.m arthastewart.com)

Nana made "Grammy's Chocolate Cookies" from Martha Stewart's Cookies book because Allen wanted chocolate cookies.

Allen was so excited to try them. He whined until they were cool enough to eat. I asked if I could try a bite. He looked at me, thought a moment, and said,

"You can lick it."

At least he was (sort of) willing to share.

xoxo,
AHC

Cuteness

2010-01-05T23:29:00.000-05:00

Some great quotes from my son, of late ...

After Nana got some yummy chocolates from someone:

"I'll have a taste of your present." (accompanied by a sly grin).

While bathing Allen, and getting ready to wash his (ahem) "privates."

"It's not a private, Mommy, it's just a butt."

Asking me to read a short story called Pierre:

"Can you read Pear-A, Mommy?"

xoxo,
AHC

Old Sheldon Church

2010-01-04T22:49:00.000-05:00

On our way home from Middleton Place, we stopped at Old Sheldon Church -- beautiful ruins of Prince William's Parish Church, which have lain in ruin for over 120 years. It was burned down twice ... once in 1779 and again in 1865.

We stayed only a short time, as it was pretty cold, getting dark, and overcast. The best photographs of the ruins are really when the sun is shining, so we didn't spend too much time taking pictures.

Allen showed no respect for the buried there, racing between gravestones, and even standing on one. But after being so good at Middleton Place, could we really blame him for expending some energy at the ruins?

Once again, I'll stop writing and let the pictures take over ...

xoxo,

AHC

Middleton Place

2010-01-04T22:34:00.002-05:00

This year, we all decided to take off for my grandmother's and aunt & uncle's visit. And the first thing we did was visit Middleton Place outside of Charleston. It's absolutely gorgeous.

There was lots of historical information (like the owner signed the Declaration of Independence), but what I remember most is that it's like the largest collection of Camellias in the country. Which was great because they were blooming now (in this freezing cold weather we're having). So it made walking around in the cold worth it (well, pretty much).

Rather than bore you with words, I'll let you look at my pictures ...

I've never heard sheep bleating like I heard them here. It was feeding time, and they were sooo noisy. Allen loved it! He kept "baaa-ing" back at them.

The only other thing I have to say -- because the pictures really speak for themselves -- is that Allen was spectacular during our entire visit. He rode in the stroller like a champ, and let everyone hold him during the house tour. I was afraid that he'd be running underneath the ropes and touching antique furniture, but he was very respectful. He was rewarded with butterfly crackers and lots of praise during lunch.

Next up ... Old Sheldon Church.

xoxo,
AHC

I'm Back

2010-01-04T22:19:00.001-05:00

So, after a relatively brief absence, I'm back.
I know you missed me terribly.

As you'll notice, no keys are missing. We got the estimate to fix the computer, and decided it was a better investment to get a new one. So I got a nifty little Gateway. It was super reasonable. And it has Windows 7 and a built-in Webcam (Skype, here I come. Well, once I figure out how to use it).

So, I'm back, and I'm wondering, where have ya'll been. What have you been up to this past week. Did you enjoy some time off? Did you have fun with family and friends? We certainly did. And I'll be posting about it soon.

xoxo,
AHC

Withdrawal

2009-12-29T22:30:00.000-05:00

My computer is broken and at the computer hospital.

I spilled hot tea on it (and myself) the other night.

Now certain keys (like e and a) don't work.

I don't know how long it will be gone.

And I might have to get a new one anyway.

I'm going through withdrawal.

I don't know how I will blog (I'm on my mom's computer right now).

I'll try to take lots of pictures and notes of all the sweet things the kid does and says.

Like today with his new watch and "target" pig (I'll explain when I have pictures).

In the meantime, I'll miss you all.

Don't forget to comment so I know you still love me :)

xoxo,
AHC

Melt

2009-12-24T21:20:00.002-05:00

(photo: scottrudkin)

Allen spent the day with Nana and Papa today. He went with Papa to run an errand in Bluffton, and he said,

Papa, will you take me to Target? Is that a deal?

Heart Melt number one. He totally got toys. Papa is such a sucker.

Tonight after dinner we were sitting on the sofa, when Allen climbed up and hugged me and said,

Awww Mommy. I'm so glad you're here.

Heart Melt number two. He totally got lots of kisses.

I love him till my heart hurts.

xoxo,

AHC

Humpty Dumpty and Backyardigans

2009-12-23T22:13:00.001-05:00

Last night before bed, Allen pulled his pants down, and started waddling around saying,

"I'm Humpty Dumpty. I'm Humpty Dumpty."

We're not sure why ... maybe because he thinks that, as an egg, Humpty Dumpty would waddle when he walks, but he thought it was hilarious and so did we.

Tonight on our way home from Nana and Papa's, Allen asked for his Backyardigans CD. Here's how the conversation went:

Allen: Backyard-a-igans pwease.

Daddy: Allen, say Back.Yard.Igans

Allen: Back.Yard. A-igans

Daddy: Back.Yard.Igans

Allen: That's what I said before. BackYard.A-igans.

And then he laughed hysterically.

Pajama Day

2009-12-22T19:43:00.000-05:00

I'm a bad mommy. I'm totally ill-prepared for Allen's first school break. We've spent the past two days home all day watching Nick Jr. and snuggling and playing with cars. I wish that I would have prepared better and made some plans for us to do some fun activities, but alas, I'm at a loss.

In my defense, yesterday I had a major allergy attack and was miserable for most of the day (I'm a little better today, but still sneezing). And today Allen was a little under the weather, so we couldn't really be away from home much. But the point is that I had nothing planned. Tell me, wonderful Moms, what do you do with your kids on break? Do you plan special activities, or do you wing it?

Anyway, today was a pajama day. As I said, Allen was a little under the weather, so I was really not able to leave his side for much time. Everytime I told him I was going to take a shower, he whined that he wanted me to stay with him. So I did. Until 3:30. Then I finally showered and got dressed (but didn't do my hair or makeup).

Allen, on the other hand, is still in his pajamas.

He was not inclined to get out of them. He never is, really. We have a daily fight with him to get dressed. Today, I was not up for the fight. Do you ever stay in your pajamas all day? How about your kids? Do you ever let them stay in their PJs instead of getting dressed? Sometimes I wish Allen had Pajama Day at school like my friend H just had (loved that picture, P, by the way).

Not only did we not get dressed today, but we didn't keep the house too neat either.

(Allen took this picture)

With all my energy spent on being patient with my kiddo since he was pawing me all day (I'm a human lovey), I didn't have any left over to clean up or even to take pictures. Except for these:

In the first picture, he's begging for the camera, and he's saying, "Say fine, Mommy. Say fine." (I hate hearing myself in him). I don't know what he's doing in the second one, but doesn't it look like he's praying?

Well, that's it for today, my friends. Don't forget to enter my giveaway over at the shop blog!

xoxo,

AHC

Stories

2009-12-21T22:51:00.000-05:00

(photo: abakedcreation)

Allen and I had a great day at home together today. He was in a particularly good mood, which made me in a good mood (except for the fact that I sneezed 50 million times today).

This morning he counted to "fiveteen."

This afternoon he told Nana and me a story. It was really long, and I don't remember all of it, but I know he borrowed some of it from Backyardigans. Here's what I remember ...

A princess had a gweaming (gleaming) jewel that she brought to the sphinx, but then a dinosaur came and ate me so I couldn't help her.

He went on about the gweaming jewel and the dinosaur for quite awhile, and then this is how the story ended:

Then I pulled my pants down, and I peed.

It was great.

Nana came over after field service, and Allen wanted to know about her day. The conversation went like this:

Allen: So how'd it go?

Nana: Good. I placed a book.

Allen: Ohhhh ... That's so gweat!

I think he might have told her he was proud of her or happy for her too. He's too much.

On a different note, did you watch the finale of Sing-Off? Did you guess the winner? Was it who you wanted?

Also, visit the shop blog and check out our giveaway. Enter to win (we'll ship anywhere in the United States). Time is running out ... you only have until Thursday at noon to enter.

xoxo,
AHC

Goodbye Brittany

2009-12-20T15:24:00.000-05:00

I can't believe she's gone! I've followed her career since she appeared in one of my all-time favorite movies, Clueless. So sad ...

The promised school pictures

2009-12-19T21:28:00.001-05:00

What do you think?? Which one is your favorite??

xoxo,

AHC

Bad day

2009-12-18T23:43:00.000-05:00

(photo by Doggy Wishbone)

Today wasn't the greatest day.

Allen threw two tantrums this morning. He screamed in my face. I screamed back. It was ugly.

Brian was sad about something, and I didn't comfort him the way I wanted to or should have. It was sad.

I cried, and Brian comforted me. It was sweet.

I didn't get to scan Allen's school pictures, but I will try to do it tomorrow.

Tell me, friends, what do you do when you have a bad day? What makes you feel better?

Hope you have a smashing weekend!

xoxo,

AHC

Allen's Latest Photography

2009-12-17T21:13:00.000-05:00

This is me last night at bedtime. Once again, I helped out a bit, by moving myself into the frame, but other than that, Allen snapped the picture on his own. I'm telling you, he's got an eye.

Speaking of pictures, we got his first school pictures today. I'll scan them in tomorrow and show them off to you. They're gorgeous, as all photos of him are. Can't wait to share them with you.

Did you guys take good school pictures, or did you dread that time of year? I always dreaded it, and I think my pictures were good only about 50% of the time. What about you??

xoxo,
AHC

Books and other amusements

2009-12-16T21:17:00.000-05:00

I missed my kid a lot today, since after I dropped him off at school, I didn't see him again (really) until after 5:00. Plus the shop was so quiet today! I only had four customers the entire day, and three of them were at the shop between 4:30 and 5:30. So I was very lonely.

Once I did finally get to see Allen and spend some time with him, he climbed into my lap, put his arms around my neck and his head on my shoulder, and said, "I missed you." It was so sweet.

For some reason, Allen is a little obsessed with the wolf in the story of the Three Little Pigs. He likes to say,

I'm gonna puff ... I'm gonna puff ... I'm gonna blow your house away!

And then he gasps twice and blows ("fffffffffffff"), and we "blow" backwards. So we had to do this like a million times tonight before bed. It was a rollicking good time (can you see my sarcasm dripping off the screen?)

In other news, Kristen and I are happy to announce that we are resurrecting the "Book(s) I Read" blog! Click on the link over there to the right to take a look at the newest post. Read it, and then let us know what your favorite children's books are.

In the meantime, have you watched Sing-Off? If so, who do you want to win? If not, you're missing out. It's a really fun show. Plus Ben Folds is adorable.

xoxo,

AHC

Back in the groove

2009-12-15T21:34:00.000-05:00

allen's back to school ... and happy about it. really happy about it. makes it really easy for me, which makes me happy.

had some time home alone today. first this morning as i waited for the heating guy to come, and then this afternoon when O took allen to the park. it was great having time to myself to get a little bit done.

i had my first merchant council board meeting this afternoon, so allen was at the shop with mom for a bit. turns out he went upstairs to hang out with his "girlfriends" (H, O, and P live above the shop now ... three girls from the hall who allen adores). while he was up there, he had to go potty and peed a little in his underpants. they took off his wet underpants and put an old pair of P's underwear on him. so allen wore flowered underwear for the rest of the day. should i be disturbed?

so we're watching that show Sing-Off right now. i'm totally smitten with Ben Folds (he's a judge). he's just the most adorable thing with his glasses and his cheesy grin. he's one of my new famous crushes. poor Brian. he's having a hard time keeping up with all of them. i have some pretty strange ones too, like Mike Rowe from Dirty Jobs and Mo Rocca. who are your crushes? anyone weird?

xoxo,
AHC

Happy

2009-12-13T22:40:00.000-05:00

We tagged along with my parents today, and visited Hilton Head congregation where Dad gave the talk.

Allen was dapper in grey pin-striped pants and matching vest.

And he was over-the-top good for the entire meeting. Sat down, got his "Bible Book" out, and found his favorite pictures (Jonah and the Big Fish and the story of David killing the bear and saving the lamb).

We accepted hospitality and had a scrumptious lunch at Truffles (side note: I totally typed scrumptious before I even looked at the Truffles homepage ... weird, eh?). I had the Portabella sandwich which was heavenly.

Allen was alternately amusing and atrocious at lunch ... he entertained himself by talking to himself in the mirror behind us, wielding the fork dangerously (and trying to get the steak knife), and "waiting" under the table. He also announced that he had "pink eyes," but that he was all better now. He agreed that Mommy took good care of him while he was sick.

Since we were in the Bluffton area (shopping mecca for us Beaufortonians), we had plans to go to Target, Kroger, and World Market. As we discussed where to go first, I said, "We'd better go to Target first to make the kid happy." To which Allen replied:

I am happy.

Jehovah [God] makes me happy.

Hearts immediately melted. He made out like a bandit at Target.

In the car on the way home, Nana was cleaning off his hands (he had been eating Funions ... he has a strange love-hate relationship with them), and when she was done, he said:

Now I'm good to go.

Too much. Just too much.

Now I sit in bed in a Benadryl haze with the Eagles game on, and my husband next to me watching very animatedly (he talks to the television almost non-stop, and occasionally gestures or dances around ... depends on how well the game is going).

I'm going to go to bed now because I'm getting up to workout with my personal trainer at 6:00 a.m. (yes, I am that crazy).

xoxo,

AHC

Meandering Thoughts

2009-12-11T23:30:00.000-05:00

I finally finally finally saw Julie and Julia tonight. Love love love it! Have you seen it? Did you love it too? I thought it was a wonderfully sweet little story, and loved learning more about Julia Child and her husband. What a fabulous marriage they must have had. As a wanna-be writer, though, it made me a little sad to know that I'm not influencing thousands with some fabulous blog that I've thought up. Oh well, I'm entertaining 11 people with the amusing antics of my 3-year-old. I guess that's something too :)

Speaking of the kid, he's still under the weather. Poor little guy. He's been sick for a whole week. Friday to Friday. I hope he starts feeling better soon because I'm getting a little worried about him. The fever is gone, and the Pink Eye nearly cleared up, but he remains quiet, clingy, sleepy, and grumpy. And he has no appetite. He barely eats all day. I'm beginning to miss his normal personality and his funny comments throughout the day.

I've been thinking about starting another blog ... I don't know what it would be about though. Thoughts, anyone? Or maybe Kristen and I should just resurrect the "Books I Read" blog. I don't know ... I'm just feeling the need to write more. What do ya'll think? Your thoughts are appreciated.

What are ya'll up to this weekend? Not much for us ... I have off tomorrow, so we'll probably just spend time as a family. I think dinner is at Mom and Dad's tomorrow night. Then Sunday, Dad has a talk in the Hilton Head congregation, so we'll be going there. After that we'll shop in Bluffton. Target and World Market, here I come!

Hope you all have lovely weekends, and I'm looking forward to your thoughts on my new blog questions.

xoxo,
AHC

Cutest Video Ever

2009-12-09T14:35:00.003-05:00

This is the cutest video ever! One of my blog world faves, Leigh over at Marvelous Kiddo, created this video with some help from her friends, and I love it. It totally cheered me up on this miserable day. Thanks Leigh!

xoxo,
AHC

Sigh

2009-12-08T22:44:00.000-05:00

I don't have a lot to say. I'm too mentally exhausted.

Allen's sick.

He's no longer napping.

We had a shady-looking man behind our house tonight.

First, Allen had some sort of intestinal bug and a fever. Then his right eye got a little red and goopy. His fever broke today, but by tonight, his left eye was really nasty. So, he won't be going to school tomorrow.

We've discovered that Allen sleeps better (and in his own bed) if he doesn't nap during the day. But that means he doesn't nap during the day. Which means Mommy has no downtime. Which has been difficult for Mommy to get used to. So Mommy is a little grumpy.

Tonight Brian and I went to hear Paul Epstein, PhD -- a Montessori expert -- speak at Allen's school. H & O babysat. He was thrilled. We arrived home to Allen's eye completely filled with goop. Brian took the girls home while I tried to clean up Allen's eye.

Brian walked in the front door (odd, since we park behind the house), and said, "Is the back door locked?" And then said that there was a strange man walking in the alley behind our house. He freaked Brian out enough that he though it unwise to park in back (and make himself a target), so I called 911. Spent a half-hour on the phone with a 911 operator while the police came out and searched around our property. (They didn't find anyone.) And while Allen screamed that he didn't want to get his eye cleaned.

As we walked upstairs, Allen said to me, "Are you sure you don't want me in your bed?" Sweet of him to check.

xoxo,

AHC

PS the picture above is of Allen watching "the video" (Muppets Bohemian Rhapsody).

Sweet boy

2009-12-03T23:13:00.000-05:00

I had a rough day today. Between the tedious task of bill-paying (not to mention stressful) and the kid being particularly ornery, my nerves were shot.

Sadly, when I have days like this I tend to take it out on my boys ... well, more specifically on Brian. I don't mean to, but sometimes it happens.

So tonight, my voice was raised slightly, and Allen immediately came over to me and reached up for me to pick him up. Then he snuggled me, and stayed close to me.

When a few tears were shed. He said,

"Don't cry Mommy. You're not sad. I want a happy girl. I want a happy Mommy."

And then he gave me a hug. He also patted me on the back during one of those great hugs he gave me.

It made me realize how fortunate I am to have this little guy in my life ... no matter how difficult he can be sometimes.

xoxo,

AHC

P.S. I apologize to my boys for being so grouchy tonight. I love you both like you wouldn't believe.